2025 Poems
Poems from 2025
The Mixer
When you’re run thru the mixer,
And spit out to dry.
And been hit by an avalanche,
and you wonder why.
Was it the choices you made,
The terrain you sampled…
That allowed the snowpack,
To have you trampled?
Or was it the big air you chose,
With an awkward landing…
Which triggered that weakness,
And left little standing?
You scoffed at the forecast,
Thought it was under control.
And though you knew better,
You hit that steep little roll.
You read the forecast,
And thought you’d be fine…
The snow was so awesome,
And you had that great line.
But the snow wasn’t thinking,
about how good you were feeling,
It was only responding,
To the stress you were dealing .
Just you and the snowpack,
Layers both weak and strong…
But costs are demanding,
And you played along.
It’s as if the ref,
Threw you out of the game,
But when you look around,
There’s no one to blame.
The snow’s not malicious,
and neither is weather…
But always add in terrain,
and link them together.
So it makes lots of sense,
To expand what you know—
And check all the layers,
Buried deep in the snow.
You might get more chances,
But sometimes you won’t—
So you better start thinking,
Whether to do or to don’t.
​
The Ski Area
Great big new area, abundant hype,
Jet setters and powder buffs, every type.
All wanting a taste, of what can be,
The views, the snow, to be seen and to see.
Lots of terrain, with lots of lifts.
Snow falling sideways, great big drifts…
Many slopes loading, danger rising,
Ski patrol busy, not surprising.
Avalanches running, some to ground,
Not much stability to be found.
Pressure is high, to get it all open,
Control teams trying and barely coping.
Radio chatter, many oohs and aahs,
With fire in the hole and slides to cause…
Patrollers are worried, if the snow doesn’t slide,
May bring post control slabs, where clients have died.
The forecasts received, more snow is expected,
And persistent weak layers have been detected…
Maybe time to think, and let the snowpack settle,
No time for heroes, no one gets a medal.
Up on the ridgetops, the wind is screaming,
Lee slopes reloading, there can be no dreaming.
Upper lifts aren’t running, the back country closed,
The patrol are all hoping no one gets hosed.
Big sighs of relief toward the end of the day,
When the last chair closes, and folks scurry away.
Bars are all packed with those having stories,
About what might have been, and recounting glories.
At least no one got buried, no one got hurt,
Even though some slides ran down to the dirt.
All can be happy, that you made it this far,
Just get home safely, on icy roads in your car.​
​
THE MOUNTAIN PASS
​
‘Twas a dangerous route, they all agreed…
A road where one did not dally,
Winding and steep, demanding your focus to keep,
It was often hit by slides enroute to the valley.
​
Though there was much avalanche control, it did take a toll,
On the workers tasked to keep the pass open,
24 hours a day, people went to work or to play,
On whichever side of the pass was not broken.
​
Its beauty was great, and they all could relate,
To views that were stunning and varied,
It had mountains that soared and chasms that roared,
And waterfalls plunged to pools deeply buried.
​
When the weather was nice, and there was no ice,
The highway was calm and inviting…
But when rain turned to snow, folks were reluctant to go,
Cause the road looked like the gods were fighting.
​
When the chains sign was flashing, and slush was splashing,
Motorists yelled and cursed while just outside checking a tire.
And then the road was closed, and they knew they’d been hosed,
As conditions on the pass turned dire.
​
Highway crews on patrol mentioned avalanche control,
And the sounds of explosives would rumble.
Then there was but a pause, which was not without cause…
And the avalanche they saw made them humble.
​
While just one slide of many, there didn’t seem to be any,
Good reasons that the pass might reopen.
So traffic turned around, no matter where they were bound,
Words of the storm ending soon were not spoken.
​
Road crews worked all night, putting up a good fight,
Controlling each slide and clearing the snow that accrued…
But early in the morning, the storm gave further warning,
When snow became rain and higher avalanche danger ensued.
​
More avalanches came, with changing weather to blame,
And a longer closure lasted for hours.
As winds gusted and blew, the front finally moved through,
With rain changing back to snow amid showers.
​
With temperatures dropping, avalanches commenced stopping,
And the pass began returning to normal…
Rotaries sent snow toward the sky, then the last plow moved by,
And the big “Pass Open” sign made it formal.
–Mark Moore, October 2025
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